This is my first post here. I've read a lot of articles and reviews on various e-readers and have narrowed down my choice to two units, the B&N nook or Sony PRS-600. I can't afford to spend any more than $200 at this time.

The ability to display PDFs correctly is very important to me. I intend to purchase books and download to my PC, then transfer them to my reading device. Currently I have a few books in AZW and LIT but I can always convert them if needed. I also have many PDF documents that are important for me to have on the road.

I like the nook's screen clarity but the Sony's faster page-turning and navigation, like going directly to a specified page number rather than using a slider as with the nook.

Do I have to pay or have a subscription for the nook's wireless? How does it work? I live in a rural area where there are no B&N stores any nearby. I don't have a cell phone, only Roadrunner and ooma.

When will the nook 2 or Sony's equivalent arrive? Does anyone have any information? Maybe I'd be better off waiting for them.

I believe, if you really need to display PDF the best they can be.. then an iPad might be better. I have not found a ereader that displays pdf files to a high standard.

Agreed, I've been recommending iPad for people who heavily use PDF as well. The technology for displaying PDFs on a 6" device are just not up to par at the moment. Will have to wait for that to improve before I change my iPad recommendation.

The iPad is around $600. I mentioned in my op that my budget is limited to $200. Even if I did have the money I wouldn't go by an iPad for several very significant reasons. Any back-lit display is very hard on the eyes for extended viewing. Even with my relatively large 26" monitor I find that I can't be at my PC for very long, certainly not long enough to read a book.

My PDF docs don't have to display perfect. I don't expect them to look as nice as on my PC. Just as long as the text is readable and I can navigate them relatively easily.

BenLee is right about the troubles with PDFs and 6" screens. I have the Sony 600 and the best way to look at PDFs is in landscape mode. Then, half of the page displays at a time. You see the top half, then turn the page to display the bottom half. You might get tired of turning the pages so often but it's easiest to read text that way.

If you have some way of formatting the PDFs for 3.5x4" paper, they will look great on the 6" screen when in regular portrait mode. The other options available are to zoom in on the text, which means you'll have to scroll down to the bottom as in landscape mode and redo the zoom after every page turn, or increase the font size which will totally ruin the text reflow.

Are your PDFs text-based, scans? Do they include lots of pictures or graphs? I own the Sony PRS-505, and I was actually very surprised at how well it renders PDFs with its reflow, considering the relatively small screen size. Most of my PDFs are text-based or OCR'd scans, however.

My main annoyance with the Sony's PDF handling is that it resets the zoom level every time you turn the page. There are other 6" readers which do, I think, handle PDFs rather better. The Onyx/Neo for one.

What kind of PDFs are you looking to read? I have a Nook and 600 right now. They display the fiction and nonfiction text PDFs exactly the same. Haven't tried a chart-heavy one. And converting PDF to ePub is a PITA as far as I'm concerned.

My PDFs are mostly text with few images. I guess whether the text re-flows depends on the PDF document. Would a PDF with few or no images convert easily to ePub?

B&N has released several firmware updates. How is Sony on their support?

Another concern of mine is that I prefer not to be tied down to a certain product. For example, if I purchase either the nook or the PRS-600 would I be able to transfer those books to a different e-reader down the road? I would hate to purchase a bunch of books on B&N or Sony only to later to find out that they don't display correctly on my new reader. I'd like an open format.

Which reminds me of another question. What file formats does B&N and Sony use?

My PDFs are mostly text with few images. I guess whether the text re-flows depends on the PDF document. Would a PDF with few or no images convert easily to ePub?

B&N has released several firmware updates. How is Sony on their support?

Another concern of mine is that I prefer not to be tied down to a certain product. For example, if I purchase either the nook or the PRS-600 would I be able to transfer those books to a different e-reader down the road? I would hate to purchase a bunch of books on B&N or Sony only to later to find out that they don't display correctly on my new reader. I'd like an open format.

Which reminds me of another question. What file formats does B&N and Sony use?

PDF: Converting ANY PDF (with or without graphics) is difficult. No matter waht, you get weird hyphenation and paragraph breaking that can really disturb the flow of reading. I spent a lot of time testing different methods of converting PDFs to ePub, and realized they are actually easier to read as PDF on the Nook & Sony than as converted ePubs. YMMV.

Firmware: Sony sells their devices as-is. I believe the only firmware update they did were for the 505 when they switched from LRF to ePub. Nook has had 4 updates since launch in December (and I'm crossing my fingers for an update that includes file organization).

DRM: B&N and Sony each use different DRM methods, even though they both use ePub. B&N uses a key that is based on the credit card you have on file with them (your credit card is NOT stored in the book), and Sony uses the standard Adobe encryption, which I believe is based on a computer ID. They each have their strengths and weaknesses. I don't care, as I strip the DRM no matter who I buy from.

Formats: Both Somy & B&N sell ePub as their primary format. B&N also offers books in a legacy format called eReader/.pdb - all the books I've downloaded via my Mac B&N software have been as .pdb, but if I download directly to my Nook, I get ePub versions of the same title. Sony sells LRF (their legacy format) and ePub.

PDF: Converting ANY PDF (with or without graphics) is difficult. No matter waht, you get weird hyphenation and paragraph breaking that can really disturb the flow of reading. I spent a lot of time testing different methods of converting PDFs to ePub, and realized they are actually easier to read as PDF on the Nook & Sony than as converted ePubs. YMMV.

Firmware: Sony sells their devices as-is. I believe the only firmware update they did were for the 505 when they switched from LRF to ePub. Nook has had 4 updates since launch in December (and I'm crossing my fingers for an update that includes file organization).

DRM: B&N and Sony each use different DRM methods, even though they both use ePub. B&N uses a key that is based on the credit card you have on file with them (your credit card is NOT stored in the book), and Sony uses the standard Adobe encryption, which I believe is based on a computer ID. They each have their strengths and weaknesses. I don't care, as I strip the DRM no matter who I buy from.

Formats: Both Somy & B&N sell ePub as their primary format. B&N also offers books in a legacy format called eReader/.pdb - all the books I've downloaded via my Mac B&N software have been as .pdb, but if I download directly to my Nook, I get ePub versions of the same title. Sony sells LRF (their legacy format) and ePub.

Which device would you rate better overall for reading PDFs--the Sony or the nook? Can the nook zoom like the Sony?

I like firmware updates on all my devices (even my home DVD player, an oppo), so that's a minor drawback for the Sony. I just watched the video demo of Calibre. Apparently it converts any file your reader does not support. How good are these conversions?

Do you use Inept to strip Adobe's DRM?

So many Qs! I leaning towards the Sony because it seems a more open platform.

Which device would you rate better overall for reading PDFs--the Sony or the nook? Can the nook zoom like the Sony?

I like firmware updates on all my devices (even my home DVD player, an oppo), so that's a minor drawback for the Sony. I just watched the video demo of Calibre. Apparently it converts any file your reader does not support. How good are these conversions?

Do you use Inept to strip Adobe's DRM?

So many Qs! I leaning towards the Sony because it seems a more open platform.

I believe only the Sony 600 & 900 can zoom - I don't see that option on my Nook. I don't really need it - I just let the device reflow since I'm reading text PDFs.

I've converted LIT, MOBI, PRC, PDF and eReader/.pdb to ePub using Calibre. The first three look great. eReader does not convert as nicely (and takes a few more steps to unlock) and PDF looks lousy. I have better luck doing it one of three other ways:

1. leave as PDF just let the device reflow - fine for most fiction PDFs
2. open in Apple Preview or Adobe Acrobat Pro and copy the text into Sigil - good for books with Drop Capitals at the top of chapters, since they garble the first paragraph of every chapter when converted and that has to be manually fixed
3. convert to .prc using Mobipocket Creator, and then have Calibre convert the .prc to ePub - best for books with pictures (like autobiographies/memoirs with the picture section)

And yes, I strip ALL my books using the various Python scripts. This also gives me the freedom to use all the formats my library offers - they still have Mobipocket for a lot the early book in series. I do not keep or redistribute the unlocked library files.

I've barely looked at a command line in my computer life, but I have managed to figure it out with a few hints from here and create some shortcuts/instructions for myself so I don't forget. There is an apprentice named Alf who has a helpful blog.

I really like both the Sonys I have, but the Nook is pretty sexy with its 3G and WiFi I fall in love with each of them for a different reason every time I pick one up. I'm blaming the indecisiveness (and obsessiveness) on postpartum hormones

I believe only the Sony 600 & 900 can zoom - I don't see that option on my Nook. I don't really need it - I just let the device reflow since I'm reading text PDFs.

I've converted LIT, MOBI, PRC, PDF and eReader/.pdb to ePub using Calibre. The first three look great. eReader does not convert as nicely (and takes a few more steps to unlock) and PDF looks lousy. I have better luck doing it one of three other ways:

1. leave as PDF just let the device reflow - fine for most fiction PDFs
2. open in Apple Preview or Adobe Acrobat Pro and copy the text into Sigil - good for books with Drop Capitals at the top of chapters, since they garble the first paragraph of every chapter when converted and that has to be manually fixed
3. convert to .prc using Mobipocket Creator, and then have Calibre convert the .prc to ePub - best for books with pictures (like autobiographies/memoirs with the picture section)

Thanks so much for all this info! I've done some conversion using ABC's LIT converter, mostly to rtf. I can do light programming but I'm no programmer. I see that Calibre supports the nook.

I like the connectivity the nook offers but I'm concerned about Wi-Fi availability in my area. This is what the AT&T Coverage Viewer shows for my area:

There's no 3G in my area. According to the Viewer, it looks like my connection would range from 75 to 135 kbps. There's a cell tower on a hill about a mile from my house. I live in a valley so I wonder how much that would affect my connection.

Many times I have used Wikipedia and other reference sources while reading a paperback and some of my MS Reader books. It'd be nice to access them from the device instead of going to my PC. But if access is quite slow then it may cause more frustration than anything. I was only too glad to get away from a 56k modem 10 years ago!